I've got my new torque convertor installed and a new flexplate bolted in. With all that out of the way, I figured the tranny would bolt back in pretty easily.. yeah right. I've got the tranny resting on a tranny jack, and the bolt holes are approximately lined up. The problem is, the tranny is still about an inch from the engine and will not move forward any more. I'm pretty certain that the converter is installed correctly, I've installed converters in the past so I know about the method you are supposed to use (though I never heard the 3 clicks that people describe during the converter install). Anyways, I can't figure this out for the life of me. Nothing seems to be binding, but the bellhousing just will not mate up with the engine. BTW, I'm doing this whole thing alone which is making it damn difficult, I'm thinking a helper may be necessay now.

thanx....

 

If I understand you correctly you have bolted the flywheel & converter to the engine & now are trying to install the trans. If so that won't work. Unbolt the converter & slide it onto the input shaft of the trans. Rotate it so the notchs on the converter engage into the front pump of the trans. This may take a little rocking & turning to get all the way on, but the pads on the converter that have the bolt holes for the flexplate should go 3/8 to 1/2" past the bellhousing bolts when it is fully engaged. Now install the trans & bolt up the bellhousing bolts. The converter should spin freely without hitting the flexplate. Next bolt the flex plate to the converter. You will need to rotate the engine. I use a prybar & ratchet it around with the flexplate teeth. Do not tighten the converter bolts until all of them are threaded in otherwise the converter won't center & may vibrate.

 

Actually, I had the converter on the transmission, not the flexplate. The problem turned out to be that the converter was not fully engaged. I removed it, and reinstalled it, turning it carefully. It sank in to place about an inch farther back than before. Problem solved. Now I just gotta go back tomorrow and put the bellhousing bolts in